


The Blood that Flows

by Anonymous



Series: Forever and Ever My Brother, Hail and Farewell [2]
Category: Shadow Hunters - Fandom, The Infernal Devices Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Angry Will Herondale, Claustrophobia, Dealing with panic attacks, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jem helps (again), Panic Attacks, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Vampires, Will is harder to deal with when he's older, these tags are a mess, yes that is a necessary tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-05 14:33:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12191766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Vampires have been spotted behaving oddly, and Will and Jem are sent to check it out. A quick re-con mission, go in, observe, and report.Except, it's never that simple is it?





	1. All that Goes well must Go Wrong

“You ready to go?”

Will finished tying up his thick, overused boots before he looked up towards the voice he knew belonged to Jem. He sent his friend a grin and stood up to join him in the doorway,

“Yes, I just need to grab a couple things from Thomas and then we can go kick some vampire ass!”

Jem chuckled and shook his head, 

“You know we’re only going to be engaging if we see any suspicious activity, otherwise we have to stay outside and observe.” 

“Exactly. And if I just so happen to see a vampire  _ suspiciously  _ doing something no one else happens to notice, then we’ll have to engage.”

Jem’s smile faded a bit and his eyes narrowed,

“Will. You’re not going to do anything that could make Charlotte look bad in front of the Clave, okay?”

Will sighed in response, pretending to be exasperated by this news,

“Fine, fine. You really are no fun James.”

Jem’s smile returned, “And yet you love me anyway.”   
Wills cocky grin seemed to falter for a moment, before it returned in full force,

“You keep thinking that James.”

 

*

“JEM!?”  
Will shouted as he ran up the first staircase he found, trying to get himself some leverage before he turned to face the angry vampires behind him. Once he reached the top he spun quickly on his heel and drove his blade into the stocky vampire behind him, pulling his sword back swiftly and jumping away before a blond woman could slash at him with her claws. He spun his sword on his way back to the ground and thrust it through her chest before once again pulling back. He glanced around for a second, hoping to catch a glimpse of familiar silver hair but saw nothing except for the maniacal grins of several more vampires making their way up the steps. 

It had all gone wrong rather quickly. He and Jem had been brought just outside of the vampire party by Thomas, and had moved from the carriage into an area with more cover. The party was taking place in a massive mansion hidden deep within the woods on the outskirts of London. Vine seemed to weave their way through the bricks as if it was a quilt,  giving the walls an odd smooth appearance. The rest of the building seemed to be in immaculate condition. The large metal doors in the front stood out against the brick and the windows looked as if they had never been dirtied. There had been some reports of mishandling of mundanes, and they were supposed to just observe and report their findings back to the clave and only engage if they saw particularly suspicious activity. 

At first the party had seemed normal. The vampires translucent skin had made them easy to watch from the trees they were hidden in and their behaviour was nothing out of the ordinary.  Almost every vampire arrived with at least one dazed mundane in tow behind them, which although was unpleasant, was also expected. Vampires often brought subjugates with them to parties so they could show off their new “prizes” in front of the others. However as time went on Will noticed Jem’s eyes narrow,

 

‘W _ hat is it?” _

_ Jem glanced back at him and looked hesitant, as if he wasn’t sure of what he was seeing, _

_ “It’s the mundanes,” He started, “They don’t look right.” _

_ Will glanced at a mundane who was being pulled up the steps by his sire, _

_ “Of course they don’t look right, they’re under the control of those pasty jerks.” _ _  
_ _ “No,” Jem shook his head, his eyes more intense now, “No I mean they seem odd for subjugates. They usually look a little dazed, but these ones look like they can hardly walk. Look.” _

_ Jem was right, of course he was. Will looked at the “subjugates” again, and studied them. Each one was relying heavily on the vampire they were with to stand and walk, and many were almost being dragged. Will looked at Jem and grinned, his smile enlarging when he noticed his friend's confusion _

_ “They’ve been drugged. Which I think is super suspicious, and should definitely get checked out by someone.” _ _  
_ _ Jem rolled his eyes, _

_ “Yes, Will we're going in. Let’s grab our stuff.” _

  
  


They ran back to the carriage and grabbed some swords and vats of holy water from Thomas, before telling him to go back  to the Institute and get them back up. There were only a few reasons vampires would be kidnapping that many mundanes, and almost every one of them ended in dead bodies. If the vampires had wanted subjugates they would have turned them before the party. Even if one or two had decided to turn their subjugates in front of an audience, there was no reason for every one of them to do it.

After they grabbed some supplies they made their way around the building, keeping out of sight, until they reached the back. They snuck slowly towards the back windows, pulling one of them open silently and slipping inside. The inside of the mansion was very similar to the outside. All of the walls were white, starkly standing out against the black of the night through the windows. Will and Jem made there way in until they reached a doorway that allowed to see into the main room.

Will shuddered as he thought of what they had seen. 

20-30 young men and women had been tied to banisters, chairs and walls, all with the same dazed expressions on their faces. They would have looked dead if it weren’t for the haunted look that seemed to be behind everyone of their eyes. Then, without warning, the vampires lept forward and started to drain the mundanes, ripping flesh to get closer to the blood they craved. It was almost ritualistic, how they all seemed to leap into action simultaneously.

WIll hadn’t even thought about his next move, he jumped up and rushed in, knowing Jem would be right behind.

_ Except that got me here  _ Will thought bitterly, not sparing a glance for the petit vampire that had advanced on him before stabbing upwards towards where the heart would have been. The numbers of vampires seemed to be increasing as the seconds ticked on. Every time he knocked one down two more would appear in front of him, fangs shining in the moonlight. He dodged left quickly to avoid a bite before rolling back to the right in almost one motion. There were too  _ many  _ of them for him to fight on his own. Even if he hadn’t lost Jem somewhere in the fight long ago, their chances would be slim. Deciding to take the high road in an attempt to avoid death (or worse, a rebirth)  he slipped under one of the vampires out stretched arms and ran quickly to the first room he could find. He swiftly slipped the door open and bolted inside. He turned towards the door to find some sort of lock, sighing in relief when he saw a deadbolt. He slipped the lock in place and leaned heavily on the door, breathing quickly.

The room he had trapped himself in couldn't have been used for anything more than a study, as it was incredibly small. The walls were a slight off white, though Will was unsure if that was from the colour chosen or how long it had been without a repaint. All that  furnished the small room was a chestnut desk, a square window and a small shoe closet that couldn’t have been more than a couple feet tall. Will acted quickly, knowing he only had a few moments before the now shaking door would be broken through and he would  be once again faced with the horde of angry vampires- only this time in a much smaller room. He ran towards the window and threw it open, stuck his head out and yelled,

“I’m on my way!”

Next he tossed the largest book he could find off of the desk and towards the forest below the window. After that had been accomplished he glanced towards the shoe closet. His mind screamed at him to find a different option, but a quick glance towards the rumbling door finalized his decision. He before pulling open the closet door, shoved himself inside, and shut the door behind him. As long as they didn't look inside, he would be fine. 

The darkness was not unexpected, but shocking nonetheless. He pulled himself into the tightest ball he could, trying to use the space to the best of his ability. The space available was very limited. He could not sit without his head hitting the top of the closet and forcing him to bend his neck at a most unfortunate angle. Due to his height he couldn't stretch his legs either, only unbend at the knees a couple inches. Panic seemed to leap into his throat, but he pushed it down. 

_ It`s only for a few moments,  _ Will thought to himself, willing his mind to shut itself down,  _ Ònly a few moments and they I get to get out, regroup, and destroy those blood thirsty bastards  _

Luckily, the door separating him and the vampires wasn't very strong, and he soon heard the snap of the wood as it was smashed open. The room seemed to rumble with the voices of angry vampires, and Will, happy to have some sort of distraction, silently etched a “Soundless” rune on his upper arm. As he moved his stele along the familiar lines the voices seemed to become more clear,

”WHERE IS HE?!”

“Didn’t you HEAR? He jumped”  
“Bastard.”

“To his death I hope.”

“We should search anyway.”  
Wills breath caught at the last statement. There was very little in the room for them to search, and the slightly smaller the human sized closet would probably be one of the first options. He moved his hand towards his belt, ready for whatever may occur. If Will Herondale was going to die in a shoe closet, then Will Herondale was going to die in a shoe closet fighting.

He heard the  _ tip tap _ of feet as they walked the perimeter of the room. One set seemed to get close and closer to his hiding spot, before it seemed to be almost directly in front of him. Will covered his mouth with his hand to stop and involuntary sounds.

The door rattled.

Nothing

Another shake

Nothing again.

“It’s locked, hes not here.” The voice by the door yelled, “The bastard got away.”  
One vampire woman screamed in anger, and a couple more growled in agreement. The footsteps started up again, except this time they seemed to echo away as they became quieter and quieter. The yells continued, but were distinctly from a different room.

Will let out a breath he wasn’t aware he was holding, and released his death grip on his dagger. He allowed himself a moment to appreciate how close he had come to his death, before reaching out to push the closet open.

It didn’t budge.

A little more panicked this time he pushed again.

The same result.

The words the vampire had spoken washed over him like a wave,

_ “It’s locked, he’s not here.” _

_ It’s locked. _

His panic jumped again, but this time it lodged itself in his throat. 

  
  



	2. But all that Goes Wrong May Heal

“Damn it, Will where are you?!”   
Jem yelled as he ran quickly through the crowd of vampires, cutting them down like stalks of corns as he went. It had gone so wrong so quickly, and the back up still hadn’t arrived.

As he approached a table he leaped onto it with practiced ease, spinning himself as he landed and slashing at the three vampires below him. Like some greek myth, after the three fell six more seemed to emerge, so he quickly swiped out again, looking for some sort of out. The first thing he spotted was the twisted face of a drained mundane, mouth open as if he was still screaming even in death. All of the other mundanes looked similar, all having been drained quickly, despite Will and Jem’s efforts. However that wasn’t what made him stop. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that not all of the vampires were swarming him. A large group had started up a twisted staircase, following after a dark figure whose movements he would recognize from any distance. 

Jem mentally filed the information about the whereabouts of his friend away for later, but in his moment of hesitance a shorter curly haired woman lunged at him teeth first. Acting on impulse he slipped out of her way, but wasn’t quick enough to notice the sweeping arm of a male vampire beside her. He let out a pained yell as the vampire's claws sunk into his forearm, blood quickly flowing from the area. Knowing another slip up could possibly cost him his life Jem put all his focus towards the vampires in front of him. _ Will will be fine  _ He reassured himself as he stabbed into the next body in front of him, _ He’ll figure it out. _

The fight seemed to go on for ages. More and more vampires surrounded him and he slowly felt his energy being drained. He glanced around himself for what felt like the millionth time, praying that there would now be some opening for him to make a strategic retreat to regroup. Once again he saw nothing. 

Suddenly, a loud yell echoed through the hall, seeming to bounce off of blood splattered walls. A vampire near the front of the hall collapsed, as a dark figure above it stood and ran into the fray of vampires. 

_ Charlotte, thank god  _

After her entrance many more shadowhunters fled into the hall, taking down vampires with the slash of a sword one by one. Suddenly the odds were flipped, and Jem returned to his fighting with renewed vigour.  The vampires he needed to take down were significantly reduced and he cut them down with relative ease. Once he was finally finished he glanced around to find a familiar face, spotting Thomas in the crowd.

“I’m going to find Will!” he told his friend, before running towards and up the staircase where he had seen his parabatai disappear. Between the mundane warriors like Thomas and the Nephilim they would have no trouble taking down the rest of the vampires in the hall, but Will still hadn’t come down the stairs again and that could only mean a couple of things. He was still fighting, he got away and was still in the process of regrouping, he was injured, or he’s dead. Instinctively Jems hand moved to his shoulder, where he knew the thick ink of his Parabatai rune lay. Thinking of the last option made the silver hairs on his arms raise, but he pushed that fear down. His Parabatai rune felt normal, and he would feel something if Will was seriously injured. 

He made his was quickly up the winding staircase, glancing around. The screams and clashing from the lower Hall followed had followed him up the stairs, but something was off. It was unnaturally quiet in the upstair region, especially if Will Herondale was around, and even more so if Will Herondale was fighting vampires. Will liked to jab with words as much as he did with his sword, a tactic that usually ended up getting the two of them in more trouble than was necessary. Jem’s eyes narrowed as he started down the hallway, walking past many rooms while listening intently for anything that would give him a hint about his best friend's whereabouts. He was about to turn around and check if there was another staircase hidden when he heard a noise. It was faint, and would have been almost unnoticeable to most, but it seemed to penetrate Jem’s mind. They had been trained for hours on how to recognize their Parabatai’s voice no matter the circumstances, and he thanked the trainers in that moment as he ran towards the noise. The words were indistinguishable, but the tone wasn’t. 

It was definitely Will.

He ran back towards the beginning of the hallway and then stopped, waiting and  _ hoping _ to hear another noise. Despite not being able to distinguish what his Parabatai had said, he knew that Will has sounded terrified, a tone that was incredibly rare for him. He stood in place, and all he could hear was the blood pumping in his ears when suddenly,

“LET ME OUT!  _ PLEASE!” _

Jem froze for a moment, in shock at the amount of absolute fear and horror that coated his friend's voice. 

He shook himself and focused, darting as quickly as he could towards the door that Will’s voice had echoed through. He took a moment to steady himself, hand on his belt, ready for whatever was inside, before he threw the door open.

Nothing.

The effect was almost the same as being surprised by a shocking noise, except this time the noise was silence. The room was nearly bare, nothing except for a brown desk and a small closet furnished it. The square window on the side wall was open, the low whistle of the night wind easily breaking through the eerie silence. Fresh blood stained the wood flooring, a clear sign that vampires had entered the room, except they were clearly no longer present

Jem took a few steps forward, his eyes darting back and forth for any sign of life.

“Will? Will are you here?”   
There was a beat of silence, before a small movement caught his eye and he spun around. 

The small closet in the corner had  _ moved. _

Jem stepped hesitantly towards the closet, bending down gently when he reached it. He reached out to the handle and pulled on it. In that moment he realized two things.

One, the door was locked

Two, the quick intake of breath that followed his movement definitely came from inside the closet.

The sudden severity of the situation hit Jem like a ton of bricks, and he quickly scrambled for his stele. With hands that were only steady due years of training he drew an opening rune across the door, muttering quickly under his breath,

“Come on, come  _ on. _ Almost there, almo-”   
The door flew open as Will’s body came tumbling out of the tiny space. 

Going against his instincts Jem forced himself to move away from his friend, the memory of a much smaller Will haunting his mind as he stared at his Parabatai.

Will’s entire body seemed to quake as he pulled his limbs further into himself, body almost rocking in a light motion. No words exited his mouth, only unnaturally quick breaths that made Jem feel as if he was having trouble breathing himself. A sheen of sweat covered the other boys skin,and all of his muscles were completely tense.  

Words that would not please Charlotte left Jems mouth as he thought quickly towards what he had done last time, anything that could make the tight grip Will had on his hair lessen, or force him to breath at a normal pace. All he had done was speak, carless, senseless sentences that had been born by the fear of not knowing what what happening to his friend. And yet, even years later he found himself in this same position, not knowing what to do. So he spoke,

“Will, Will it’s Jem. You’re alright okay? You’re alright. Everythings okay, we’re both okay. Back up arrived and Charlotte destroyed some vampires, you should have seen it….”

This pattern continued until the faded look in Will’s eyes started to disappear and his breaths came less quickly. He was still breathing unnaturally fast, but slow enough that his knuckles were no longer white from his grip on his hair. A relieved smile crossed Jems face when Will finally looked up at him, but it was quickly washed away when he saw his friend's face. His eyes were bloodshot and wide, as if he had just seen something terrifying. The paleness of his skin stood out starkly against his black hair and thin tear tracks seemed to race down his cheeks. Seeming to notice Jem’s eyes he wiped at his cheeks with his sleeves, moving hesitantly to a sitting position.Unsure once again as to what would be okay Jem slowly reached his hand forward, letting it rest on his friend's shoulder when he faced no resistance

“Jem…”

The loud movement of heavy boots broke the silence in the room as someone made their way up the stairs. Will's face seemed to change almost instantaneously, a hardened look replacing the originally broken one, the only sign of the change the red tint that still sat in his eyes. He batted Jem’s arm away quickly before standing up almost just as fast, stumbling a bit on his shaking legs before straightening. The transformation seemed to take mere seconds, and Jem suddenly found himself looking at a confused Charlotte as she made her way into the small room.

“What happened here?” She asked, light concern in her voice as she glanced between the two boys, “Are you two okay? Jem you’re bleeding!”

Jem looked down at his arm, having forgotten about the large gash he had received from the vampire in the hall earlier,

“Oh, yea I’m fine.  It’s nothing a rune and a couple days won’t fix. “

Charlotte shook her head in slight amusement, “Make sure someone takes a look at it sometime tonight,” She glanced between the two of them again, “are you sure you’re both alright?”   
Jem looked at Will from the side of his eye before making a quick decision,

“Yea we’re fine. Will just had to take down a few Vamps up here, so I figured you guys would be okay in the Hall and came up here to help. We finished up quickly though and we were just taking a look around..”   
Jem winced at the weakness of his fib, but hoped that Charlotte would just accept it and move on. Although it would be reasonable for the two of them to be looking around upstairs for anything suspicious, the lack of vampire bodies around them and the fact that they were still in the first room of the hallway still made it slightly unbelievable. Luckily Charlotte just gave him an odd look before seeming to accept it and moved on,

“Well, if you two are finished up up here we were just about to head out. Counsel wants to do most of the investigating, apparently there’s been similar mundane round ups with vampires around different institutes and they may be connected. “

Jem nodded mutely and told her that they would be with her in a moment. After she had left and started her way back down the stairs he returned his attention back to Will.

“Will is there an-”

“Jem I’m fine.”

The switch in Will's voice was staggering. It was as if he had taken any left over panic and shoved it deep inside himself, his words coming out rough as he dismissed his friends concern. Jem’s eyes narrowed and he reached forward to rest his arm on his friend's shoulder once again,   
“No you’re not! I just wanted t-”

“I told you  _ I’m FINE” _ Will hissed, eyes narrowed this time in dark anger. He grabbed Jems hand  _ hard _ and pushed it away from himself, continuing to glare, 

“Do.  _ Not. _ Touch me.” He seethed before seeming to run out the door, leaving Jem to stare at the spot where he had once been.

*

Like most of Will’s dramatic flare ups, this one ended up being nearly pointless since the two of them had to ride in the same carriage home. They sat in a thick silence, starkly different than their usual chatter on the rides to and from battle. Thomas obviously noticed the difference as he glanced back at them with clear concern in his soft eyes, but as was common with the stoic man, he stayed quiet. 

Will sat stiffly on Jems left side, eyes staring resolutely out the window. To most outsiders nothing would really look amis. Will may look slightly upset or angry, but both of those emotions were common place with Will Herondale and would not be seen as anything to take a second glance at. Except to Jem it was so obviously different.

Wills anger was  _ loud. _ Will was expressive and concise, and was never concerned about hitting others where it hurt, whether that was with a blade or a verbal jab. This was nearly the complete opposite. His Parabatai had made it so that he took up as little space as possible; his feet were up on the carriage bench, and his arms were shoved tightly between his knees and his chest. He seems almost completely still except for the small shake in his arm that Jem only noticed when Will moved his arm while turning towards the window. It was as if he had taken every emotion that must have been crashing through his mind in those moments in the closet and shoved them deep within himself. Jem could almost see the bricks being laid down as Will built up another wall around himself.

And it made Jem mad.

Not in the regular anger fashion where one wanted to tear the other apart or yell at them until their throat hurt. No, this anger was more so to do with the knowledge that his close friend was hurting and wouldn’t let him do anything about it. 

Making up his mind, Jem turned towards Will,

“Give me your arm.” He said as sternly as he could manage.

Jem’s voice seemed to surprise Will as he jumped a little bit, turning towards his friend in slight confusion. 

“No. Leave me alone James” he responded, voice as cold as earlier. After he finished speaking he turned back towards the window, staring into the dark sky.

Jem rolled his eyes at the other stubbornness and reached towards his belt to grab his stele before repeating himself,

“Will, give me your arm.”

“Fuck off Jem, I said no.” Will responded again, this time with more annoyance than confusion, “Why the hell do you want my arm anyway?”   
Jem didn’t respond, instead he moved towards Will and got a tight grip on the top of his left forearm, yanking it away from his chest. Will’s eyes widened comically as he started to struggle, but he was weaker than usual, not putting nearly his full force into it. The shaking in his hand was more noticeable now, a constant movement that it didn’t seem like the other boy could control. Silently, Jem picked up his stele and moved it towards where he knew Will’s  **_Calm_ ** rune was, wrapped right below his wrist. Jem started to follow the smooth strokes,

“You’re shaking too much to do it yourself, and it’ll help, at least for now. So let me help you goddamnit” He hissed quietly, thankful that the other had stopped struggling, taking to glaring at his friend instead.

After Jem finished the rune he moved back to his spot on the other side of the carriage, allowing Will to take back his arm and start to once again stare blankly out the window. 

*

Their arrival back at the institute felt like the calm before the storm. Jem knew there was no way for anyone to take that much anxiety and just rid of it within seconds, and the relief that washed across Will’s face when he was finally able to leave the carriage and disappear into the institute only proved that. Will could be  proud and arrogant, but more importantly then that Will was very private. He didn’t like to show any visible emotion in front of others, and Jem suspected it was less due to embarrassment and more to fear. But the source of that fear was unknown to him due to the number of walls that the other boy had built around his life. 

Jem exited the carriage slowly before making his way inside, putting more weight than usual onto his cane. He was still feeling physically and emotionally drained from the fight before and knew he was going to have to use some Yin Fen if he wanted to be able to function the next day. He scrunched his nose the the thought of the drug, but he knew it was necessary, particularly if he wanted to have the energy to deal with Will later that night. He didn’t want Will to be completely alone when the panic finally hit him.

After he had made it to his room he took the smallest dose he could manage of Yin Fen before standing up again, and moving towards his closet. Grabbing some bandage he wrapped his bad arm gingerly, tieing it off twice before deciding that it would be fine. It was nothing too deep and would probably be mostly healed by tomorrow.  He reached for his witch light and his cane, and headed towards Will’s room down the hall. The witch light glowed brightly through the dark hallway, and Jem soon found himself in front of his friends door. Readying himself he knocked lightly before opening the door and stepping in, closing it quickly behind him.

Will was walking quickly around the room, and didn’t seem to notice his friend's arrival. He had made his way towards his closest and was trying to dig through it but the shake that had left his hands in the carriage had returned making it more difficult. Only after he had stuffed a couple pounds in his pockets and slipped his jacket on did he stand up and turn towards the door, jumping back slightly when he finally noticed Jem,

“Where are you going?” Jem asked curiously, staring at his friend oddly

“Drinking.” was the clipped response he received.

Jem regarded the other cautiously,    
“Will, do you really think that’s the best idea?”

“I hope not, think I might kill someone if I ever come up with a good idea.” Will responded, smiling weakly. He still made no movement towards the door.

The two of them stood in silence for a few moments, the only movement the shake in Will's hand. Jem took the moment of silence to think through what he was going to say. Drinking was definitely not what was going to solve Will’s problem and Jem knew it, hell Will probably knew it too, but the problem was convincing Will to convince himself. It was as confusing and as difficult as it sounded and Jem knew he had to say the right thing or Will would storm out like he had many times before, and not come back until morning. An idea hit Jem’s mind and he considered it. It was a bit of a jerk move, but it would get Will to stay,

“Will, I’m not feeling well.”

With just those five words Will’s whole demeanor changed. He moved towards Jem quickly, concern clear on his face,   
“What do you mean James? Was it from the fighting? Did you not take enough before we left? I  _ told _ you we might have to fight tonight. “ 

Wills worried chatter continued as he pulled Jem towards his bed and sat him down. Jem smiled at Will hesitantly before,

“If I tell you will you stay in tonight?”

Will regarded Jem slowly,

“Yea, fine, I won’t go just tell me what you need.”

Jem took a breath in, this was it. This was the moment where Will either listened to him or would leave,

“I need you to let yourself feel.”   
The words hit Will hard, and he stood up quickly, eyebrows furled in oncoming anger.  He opened his mouth, most likely to yell what he felt was none of Jem’s business when Jem cut him off,

“You need to let it happen Will! You can’t keep burying it inside yourself as if it never occurred, it going to come out at some point!”   
Will shook his head,

“No James, it was nothing.”   
“Don’t act like I’m stupid Will! I was  _ there _ last time, I know what small spaces like that does to you. If you don’t let it out now you’re just going to explode at some other point of time, some point that likely won’t be this private and without judgement.” Jem sighed, all out of energy and arguments,

“I can leave if you want me to, but you need to let it happen.”

  
Will stared at him for a few moments before sitting back down on the bed. He stared at his hands blankly, eyes focused on the finger nails he now had digging into the palm of his hand. Finally he nodded once, and that was it. It was like a gate had been opened, and suddenly his body began to shake, shoulders hunched over and his breathing picked up again. Tears fell from his cheeks into his hands, but otherwise he remained mostly still. 

Jem sat silently beside his friend, emotions a confusing mix of relief and sadness. It wasn’t fair that Will had to deal with so much, but all of them had their challenges and this was just one of his. Jem spoke quietly,

“Would you like me to leave?”

Will shook his head resolutely before speaking in almost a whisper,

“No just...just stay here. You don’t have to do anything just…”   
Jem nodded in understanding and remained where he was.

He knew that at some point Will would have to learn to be his own compass, to decide for himself when he needed to let go and just feel. But for now, while he could,  Jem was perfectly content to aide his friend in all the ways he knew how.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that took longer then planed (I blame work and school) but I finally finished it to my liking I think.  
> Hope you enjoy

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to add a second part to this because Jem and Will are just too much fun to write. All depictions of claustrophobia are based off of my personal experiences, but obviously don't represent everyone experiences with it.  
> I honestly am unsure if the next chapter should be from Will or Jem's POV, so if you have any thoughts or ideas it would be greatly appreciated!


End file.
